Following Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif’s presence at the Iranian Parliament (Majlis) on August 20, the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of Majlis decided to convene a precise and detailed meeting with the Foreign Ministry experts to review all provisions of the Caspian Sea Convention in detail, Abdul Karim Hosseinzadeh said.
Hosseinzadeh who serves as the deputy chairman of Parliament’s Omid (Hope) faction, added that Foreign Minister Zarif briefed the MPs on provisions of the Convention but in order to be more specific, some detailed information on the decisions taken during the negotiations are needed.
He added, during the meeting with Foreign Ministry experts, details of the signed document and negotiations between the five countries bordering the sea will be reviewed.
On August 12, presidents of five Caspian Sea littoral states signed the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea calling it a landmark instrument that is expected to expand good-neighborly relations among parties including Iran, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Russia and Kazakhstan.
Around 90 percent of the Convention has been addressed by the member states.
Only two issues – determining the base lines and delimitation of the remaining seabed and underground resources – need further negotiations, said a statement by the Foreign Ministry one day after signing of the Convention.
It expressed hope that the two issues would also become finalized with the cooperation of all member-states.
Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov later said that deputy foreign ministers of the Caspian Sea states will meet for consultations in Baku, Azerbaijan, in the fall of 2018.
